Councilman in troubled CA city joins recall effort

JOHN ROGERS, Associated Press Writer

One of four City Council members targeted for removal in the scandal-plagued suburb of Bell said Tuesday he now supports the recall effort but won't resign.

Councilman Luis Artiga explained that if he quits, the other three council members could simply appoint a replacement, and the name of that person wouldn't be on the recall petitions currently being circulated.

Artiga said he would consider resigning if the other three council members agreed to do so simultaneously.

The recall was launched after residents of the blue-collar city learned Artiga and the other three embattled council members were being paid nearly $100,000 a year for their part-time service.

It was also revealed that Bell's city manager was making nearly $800,000 a year, the assistant city manager $376,288 and the police chief $457,000.

Those three administrators have since resigned. Meanwhile, Artiga and another council member have slashed their salaries to about $8,000 a year.

The other two members targeted for recall have said they would work for free in the city where state and federal authorities are investigating possible voter fraud, corruption and racial profiling.

Artiga said Tuesday he never voted for any of the high salaries, including his own. All were approved before he joined the council two years ago, he said.

Still, the longtime pastor at the Bell Community Church said he should have been more vigilant after joining the City Council.

Artiga said he previously had no idea how much city officials were being paid, and that he was shocked when he discovered how high his own salary was. He said he accepted the money, however, and used a good portion of it to pay down the mortgage on his church.

"Did I fail the community? Yes, I did because I should have known," he said by phone, adding he was headed to the office of the Bell Association to Stop the Abuse to sign a recall petition.

Spokeswoman Cristina Garcia said the association supports Artiga's decision not to resign immediately, a move that would have allowed the council to appoint its own replacement.

In a prepared statement, the group said, "We appreciate that his intentions may have been pure, but it is far more important that he acknowledges his poor judgment and that he did not rule with wisdom, and that he accepts the consequences of such mistakes."

Lorenzo Velez, the lone council member not targeted for recall, said he had no idea the other members were making so much money. His salary was about $8,000 a year.

Mayor Oscar Hernandez and Councilman George Mirabal have said they won't seek re-election when their terms are up.

Garcia said the association hopes to gather 4,000 signatures within the next two weeks, meaning an election could be held in January.